Your Countryside Park, your watershed

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We are looking for ways to improve water quality and reduce flood risks through stormwater measures at Countryside Park. We thank the community for your participation while we look for a design solution that:

  • reduces future flood risks
  • protects and improves water quality
  • is technically workable
  • fits into current park uses
  • and fits within the project budget

Why are we adding stormwater measures to the park?

Climate change will bring more intense storms and more frequent freeze-thaw cycles. Creating more spaces for stormwater to collect in neighbourhoods reduces flooding during storms.

There are two large stormwater pipes currently running next to Countryside Park. They carry runoff from storm sewers through the neighbourhood to Balzer Creek and the Grand River. Countryside Park is a good place to add stormwater facilities to collect and filter runoff. By adding stormwater storage to the neighbourhood, we will:

  • Improve water quality in Balzer Creek and the Grand River;
  • Reduce the risk of flooding;
  • Reduce erosion in Balzer Creek;
  • Improve resilience against climate change; and
  • Enhance community safety.

For more information on this project, please read the project background.

Connecting stormwater facilities and park uses

We want to understand how Countryside Park is currently used and what’s important to you in your park experiences. This will help us to better integrate the stormwater facilities into the park space.

Stay Informed

Subscribe for updates and be the first to know about news and information about this project. Add your email to the Stay Informed box on this page and click ‘Subscribe’.


We are looking for ways to improve water quality and reduce flood risks through stormwater measures at Countryside Park. We thank the community for your participation while we look for a design solution that:

  • reduces future flood risks
  • protects and improves water quality
  • is technically workable
  • fits into current park uses
  • and fits within the project budget

Why are we adding stormwater measures to the park?

Climate change will bring more intense storms and more frequent freeze-thaw cycles. Creating more spaces for stormwater to collect in neighbourhoods reduces flooding during storms.

There are two large stormwater pipes currently running next to Countryside Park. They carry runoff from storm sewers through the neighbourhood to Balzer Creek and the Grand River. Countryside Park is a good place to add stormwater facilities to collect and filter runoff. By adding stormwater storage to the neighbourhood, we will:

  • Improve water quality in Balzer Creek and the Grand River;
  • Reduce the risk of flooding;
  • Reduce erosion in Balzer Creek;
  • Improve resilience against climate change; and
  • Enhance community safety.

For more information on this project, please read the project background.

Connecting stormwater facilities and park uses

We want to understand how Countryside Park is currently used and what’s important to you in your park experiences. This will help us to better integrate the stormwater facilities into the park space.

Stay Informed

Subscribe for updates and be the first to know about news and information about this project. Add your email to the Stay Informed box on this page and click ‘Subscribe’.

Ask a Question

Do you have a question about this project? Ask it here. 

Because of the high number of questions we're receiving about our stormwater management projects, we can't answer most questions directly. Instead, we'll update the FAQ section of this page with new questions.

To protect your privacy:

  • Do not include your last name in your username
  • Do not include any personal information (like your address) in your question  

We usually respond within three business days. If your question is urgent, call the City of Kitchener at 519-741-2345 (TTY: 1-866-969-9994)

 

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    Will you be putting a fence around the ponds considering there are two elementary school right across the field? Are these ponds going to be circulating water so there is no stagnate smell or become mosquito breeding grounds? Will you be taking away the walking path?

    Beth2022 asked over 1 year ago

    Thanks for your questions and sorry for the delay in responding.

    We will design the ponds with safety as a priority and follow all current standards and guidelines. The ponds will be designed deep enough to prevent stagnant water odour and mosquito breeding habitat from forming. We will upgrade the path and move it around the pond but will maintain the same continuity that it currently has. We'll share more details once the pond design begins. Please subscribe to the Engage page to receive updates.

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    Will this project impact the large mature trees near Rittenhouse Rd? Doing so would drastically impact the inherent beauty of the community, the habits of the local wildlife as well as have significant impact on the residence’s enjoyment of their neighbourhood. Also, in looking at the first conceptual drawing - How far do these drawings place the excavations and fencing from the neighbouring property lines?

    howieandwanda asked over 1 year ago

    Thank you for your questions about the work, it appears that some of the trees will need to be removed.  Once the design is started we will get a better sense of the impacts once the background investigation is completed. Though trees may be removed, the ponds will be planted with more trees and vegetation which will enhance the park landscape once the vegetation is established.


    The drawings provided on the Engage Page from the master plan are intended to present an idea of what is possible. The design will provide more context once it begins. The excavations for the ponds will be designed to be limited to City property. 

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    Just wondering what safety features will be around the pond. Where will the pond be located and their sizes please.

    Briancindy asked over 1 year ago

    We haven't yet confirmed the exact location, size and design details of the two ponds for Countryside Park. The proposed locations are at the two entrances to the park. We will develop these details through the design process. We'll share design proposals with the public for review and comments at various stages. Subscribe to this Engage page to receive all updates.

    Safety is a key factor in the way we design stormwater management ponds. We apply Provincial and Municipal safety standards. Some safety measures include signage, buffer zones, railings, and natural planting barriers.

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    Is there anywhere to see what the projected layout of the ponds would look like? Is there any plan to address potential concerns for mosquito proliferation as a result of the ponds?

    Pawel M asked over 1 year ago

    As mentioned in a response below, we will upload an image of the conceptual layout of the ponds to Engage as soon as possible. In the meantime, please email me, the Project Manager at Chris.Nechacov@kitchener.ca, and I will send you the conceptual plan. Please note that the conceptual plan only serves as a basis for the preliminary design. Plans may change considerably throughout the design process.

    We design stormwater ponds to avoid creating pools of shallow, stagnant water where mosquitoes like to breed. We add native plants within and around the pond perimeter to create a habitat for natural predators such as bats, birds and frogs. These native plants also support pollinator insects like butterflies and native bees.

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    How will this development impact contracted lawn care services? Approximately where are the ponds to be located in the park? What is the plan to control unwanted bugs and insects ie. mosquitos?

    lkurt1106 asked over 1 year ago

    Thanks for your questions. The pond project will not have a direct impact on lawn care services. But the whole community benefits when we care for local creeks and rivers.  

    We are considering locating one pond near the Countryside Crescent entrance to the park. We may locate the second pond on the opposite side of the park along Rittenhouse Road. It is still too early to confirm locations.

    If you visit Kitchener’s stormwater ponds, you don't find a lot of mosquitoes. We design stormwater ponds to avoid creating pools of shallow, stagnant water where mosquitoes like to breed. We add native plants within and around the pond perimeter to create a habitat for natural predators such as bats, birds and frogs. These native plants also support pollinator insects like butterflies and native bees.

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    Hello, I live in the area and we currently have a high water table making our sump pumps run continuously during the non summer months. Will the storm ponds add to the ground water table affecting the neighboring properties and potentially cause basement flooding? Thanks

    Fred S. asked over 1 year ago

    Drilling will happen over the next few weeks at the park to assess the groundwater table and the soil conditions on site. The design of the ponds will take all of the existing condition information into consideration and will not negatively impact groundwater levels.

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    Do you have an example of existing ponds in the community and what they look like. Also, where are the ponds going to be installed and lastly, we want to ensure that we can use this park during construction, as it's very important for our daily routine.

    JimKW asked over 1 year ago

    Thanks for reaching out with your questions. Please check out the stormwater management ponds at Waldau Woods Park and Forest West Park. These are good examples of the type of wet ponds that we will add to Countryside Park, though the ponds in Countryside Park are proposed to be smaller.   

    We are considering locating one pond near the Countryside Crescent entrance to the park. We may locate the second pond on the opposite side of the park along Rittenhouse Road. It is still too early to confirm locations.

    Thank you for letting us know the park is important to your daily routine. During construction, we will close part or all of the park for safety because of the use of heavy equipment. Later this year we will post a survey on the Engage page to help us understand how people use the park. One way we will use the survey results is to minimize impacts on the community during construction.

    We encourage you to subscribe to the project Engage page. We will use Engage to post project updates including construction details when we are at that stage in a few years.

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    I live in the area and I am interested in seeing the design plans for the Countryside Park storm pond. Please send me a link for the drawings. Thanks.

    Fred S. asked over 1 year ago

    We are working on creating an accessible version of the 2016 Council-approved conceptual plan for Countryside Park, found in the Integrated Stormwater Masterplan. We will upload this to Engage as soon as possible. In the meantime, please email Project Manager Chris Nechacov at Chris.Nechacov@kitchener.ca, and he will send you the conceptual plan. Please note that the conceptual plan only serves as a basis for the preliminary design. Plans may change considerably throughout the design process.

Page last updated: 27 Mar 2024, 09:35 AM